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Voldemort's Mark?

I am writing an assignment that involves Voldie, and I was wondering how the Death Eaters summoned him during DH. Does Voldemort have the Dark Mark? If so, is it on his left arm also? Maybe he has a more elaborate Mark? Or maybe they communicate by advanced Legilimens/telepathy?

If I had to take a shot in the dark, these are the scenarios I would consider most likely:

Something involved with the Mark being physically placed on the Death Eaters (i.e. a component of the actual brand, such as blood or some other piece of the Dark Lord) gives them some sort of connection to him.

A spell is cast when the Mark is placed, verbally or otherwise, that provides the connection.

The Dark Eaters, upon touching their wands to their own Mark, non-verbally incant a particular spell

The Dark Lord has a "Master" Mark, possibly of a slightly different design, that connects all of them.

There are issues with all of those.

Although there is very limited mention made of this in the books, there doesn't seem to be a LOT of blood magic in the Harry Potter universe. Now that could be a point of view thing; Harry wouldn't be likely to have learned about it, but traditionally in Western Culture, Blood Magic is sometimes seen to be even more offensive than killing.

A non-verbal incantation of the spell requires that a person have mastered the ability, and it's unlikely that all of the Death Eaters are that much more superior at magic than everyone else. Assuming Regulus Black wasn't the only 16 year old recruit into the Death Eaters, and assuming non-verbal magic is always taught at 5th, 6th or 7th year Defence Against the Dark Arts, it's unlikely that some of the nrew recruits had learned it. I'm quite sure there are Death Eaters who can't cast non-verbally at all; despite the fact that Harry hated Snape and would argue with him about the sky being blue, Harry was not the only person in his class having difficulty with non-verbal spells. And we didn't hear any incantation when we saw Bellatrix summoning the Dark Lord (although, I have to say, it's quite likely that Bellatrix is QUITE accomplished at non-verbal casting, and anything she casts verbally she does so out of personal preference).

If the Dark Lord had a "Master" Mark, he would have lost it when he lost his body.

And finally, if he doesn't have a way to Summon them *himself*, then it requires that he Summon all of them at once, like he did in Goblet, which I find quite frankly very unlikely.

I don't think that any time the Dark Lord wanted to speak to, say, Yaxley, that he had to Summon Crabbe & Goyle as well. There has to be a way that he was able to Summon an individual. We already know that none of the Death Eaters knew who all the others were (from Karkaroff's trial). Clearly Snape didn't know Pettigrew was a Death Eater.

If I myself were going to write it, and bear in mind I like really Dark fic, what I would probably do is make a Master Mark (probably in something reflecting his Slytherin heritage) on the Dark Lord, and then every time he inducts someone else, he cuts out a piece of the Master Mark and incorporates/mixes it into the brand he puts on the new recruit, which is then placed with some kind of non-verbal spell that only the Dark Lord knows. I would also make it that he slices a bit out of his own Master Mark in a *different* spot each time, so that touching that exact part of the Mark would call that particular Death Eater.

And maybe have him recreate his own Master Mark in his new body by taking bits out of the Marks of all the (returned/freed/whatever) Death Eaters so that he can once again call them individually. I would do this the night of the ressurrection, personally.

Weeeeeell... Actually, by that time he has, "to use the common phrase, done a bunk" (Minerva, ch.31), and has been "called back from battle" (Voldemort, ch.32).

But there might have been ward around the Shrieking Shack, and the battle has been going on within the Hogwarts ground as well...
*is bunnied a Severus POV of that battle*

So anyway, the Apparition explanation is technically plausible, and sorry for being the nitpicky canon freak that I am.

Although I still doubt whether Voldemort would have his own mark...

My arguments:
1) From what we know from canon, we keep getting snippets of only the DE being marked. Like:

"When he touched the Mark of any Death Eater, we were to Disapparate, and Apparate, instantly, at his side."

- Snape, GoF, conversation with Dumbledore and Fudge in the Hospital wing.

"Hold out your arm," said Voldemort lazily.
...
Voldemort bent down and pulled out Wormtail's left arm; he forced the sleeve of Wormtail's robes up past his elbow, and Harry saw something upon the skin there ... the Dark Mark. Voldemort examined it carefully, ignoring Wormtail's uncontrollable weeping.
...
He pressed his long white forefinger to the brand on Wormtail's arm."

- GoF, Flesh, Blood and Bone.

The second part offers a question - why bother with Wormy if he had a Mark of his own? Possible answer, already brought up before - Voldemort's Mark disappeared after his rebirth.

Alright, but what about Snape's words about "When he touched the Mark of any Death Eater"?
Possible answer - maybe even Snape doesn't know everything (however shocking the notion ).

2) From a personality POV, I think he would eagerly brand his followers for his own, but to have a brand himself would be, on a certain level, equating himself with them, even if it was a 'Master Mark.' If anything, I could imagine it being an object, and not part of him...

But the idea of Voldemort not having any tangible marks/objects/symbols still seems to have more appeal for me personally. Like, the followers may need the marks to be recognized as his own, but he, the Lord, requires no mark, no symbol, no label to be recognized. He is known without any extra signs. For some reason, that strikes me as a rather Voldemort notion. Wishing to make himself a name that people would fear to speak. And being someone who requires no mark to be recognized.

Maybe, assuming he does have a master mark of his own, when he touches it to call his followers to him, he thinks the name of the death eater, or just 'all' if he wants all of them, and that corrosponds to each different death eater

Oh, he *clearly* doesn't. I really *don't* think he had any idea Pettigrew was a Death Eater.

Originally Posted by Elmindreda

Although I still doubt whether Voldemort would have his own mark...

2) From a personality POV, I think he would eagerly brand his followers for his own, but to have a brand himself would be, on a certain level, equating himself with them, even if it was a 'Master Mark.' If anything, I could imagine it being an object, and not part of him...

But the idea of Voldemort not having any tangible marks/objects/symbols still seems to have more appeal for me personally. Like, the followers may need the marks to be recognized as his own, but he, the Lord, requires no mark, no symbol, no label to be recognized. He is known without any extra signs. For some reason, that strikes me as a rather Voldemort notion. Wishing to make himself a name that people would fear to speak. And being someone who requires no mark to be recognized.

Agreed wholeheartedly, except for then you have that problem of him having to have someone with him at all times so that whenever he wants to talk to another one, he has to Summon them all.

I don't really see him sending owls.

"Dear Lucius. Please deign to grace me with your haughty aristocratic presence and if you can fit me into your schedule, I'd love to have tea with you this afternoon. Cuddles & squishies, The Dark Lord"

>__<

And we already know that none of the Death Eaters (besides Snape) can use a Patronus.

"Dear Lucius. Please deign to grace me with your haughty aristocratic presence and if you can fit me into your schedule, I'd love to have tea with you this afternoon. Cuddles & squishies, The Dark Lord"

Okay, let's talk blood magic then.

We know that the Mark has been growing stronger on the arms of Voldy's crowd during book four. During that time, he was gaining strength, but was not resurrected until the end. When he regained his body completely, the DEs' marks burned black.

Maybe when a DE is marked, Voldy gains a measure of control over them via the Mark on them. He marks them personally, doesn't he?

Maybe not a measure of control even, because a DE can (and did) defy the Dark Lord, but rather, a link. Also, if we think where the Mark is located... The inside of the arm, very close to some veins. It would be easy for the magic to seep into the blood, so to speak, when the Mark is being engraved.

*wonders if any of it makes sense*

Yes, I know it'd be easier to simply give him his own Master Mark, but that screams OOC at me.